Kickstarter Update

Hello readers,

We are drawing on the final few days of the Fallen Desire Kickstarter. We are 80% funded, but until we hit the finish line, nothing is guaranteed! So if you have been waiting for payday, or haven’t had the time to check it out, please do it now.

Some really cool rewards are still available, including the Arch Demon special—which offers you the chance to feature in one of my future books as a character! Both ebooks and paperbacks are available, including signed copies. There’s something for every budget. Oh, and don’t forget to check out the video below.

If you want to discuss the story, I am doing a Q&A on Goodreads.

Thanks for reading. Wish me luck!

The Kickstarter is Live! Get your copy of Fallen Desire

Hello faithful readers,

After an extended delay on their end, our Kickstarter is now finally live! Following months of writing, editing, planning, and design, the book is ready to see the light of day. Support the Kickstarter.

If you like urban fantasy stories in the vein of Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters, Lauren Kate’s Fallen, or Alexandra Adornetto’s Halo, you will love Fallen Desire. It’s got black magic, scifiesque cityscapes, and a healthy dose of spy thriller. And it’s about two boys who are in love. Yup—all that and LGBT representation to boot. Still not convinced? Why not read the blurb:

The Devil is many things: beautiful, cruel, and sometimes mischievous. But above all he is cunning. Thrust into Hell against his will, Mark must learn to navigate this fantastical world – a world where demons rule over mortals, and curious little imps can be found spying in hidden nooks and crannies.

Mark needs allies, but when betrayal lurks in every corner, who can you trust?

I will be releasing another post detailing the journey of how I came to write this book: I will tell you all about what it was like to write my fans in the story; what had to be cut; what’s it like working with an editor; and how some of the scenes got written. Stay tuned!

I’m finally getting published

Hello readers!

I have been busy these past few weeks, which is why I have not posted any updates here on the Magical Realm. Partly, it’s been because of the new book, Fallen Love. I’ve been advertising on Facebook, fulfilling backer rewards for Kickstarter (lots of paperbacks to send out!) and I’m negotiating the rights to the sequel with a small press.

Yes, you read that right: a small fantasy publisher wants to publish the next book! The talks are only at the beginning stage so far, and there is much to think about. Editing, design and marketing are the big ticket items; there are a million other things that go into a publishing contract.

There is a trade-off involved, naturally: the royalties aren’t as good as in self-publishing, which means I have to sell more books to earn the same. In exchange, I get editing, which is seriously expensive business (think $2000+ for a full-length novel). The publisher has a physical presence in California, which offers many opportunities—conventions, bookstores, Kickstarter rewards—that wouldn’t be open to me otherwise. Finally, I want someone to do the work for me. Self-publishing is too complicated and too exhausting.

The Curse of the Automobile

I’ve started taking driving lessons. Getting my licence will prove a time-consuming and tedious process, mostly because of bureaucracy. I can’t say I’m massively excited about it, because it’s not like I can afford a car at this stage in my life. Moreover, car transport is the cause of many negative externalities—pollution, climate change, congestion, and obesity among them.

Sadly, the reality is that we are hopelessly dependent on cars. You need to drive a car in order to be an independent adult. Even employers require it as a condition for getting a job—or the market forces you to drive a car because living in the city is too expensive.

Plans for the future

But enough about that! I have exciting plans for my writing. Getting a publisher for Fallen Desire is just the beginning; there are other promising opportunities I’m exploring. You’ll hear more about it in the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned!

Fallen Love is finally here!

Hello intrepid reader!

I am delighted to announce that Fallen Love is now on sale! Head over to the Fallen Love page up top, or click the button below.

You can get Fallen Love as both an eBook and a paperback. What’s more, the eBook has Amazon X-Ray enabled, which lets you see useful information about characters and terms.

Thanks to my Kickstarter backers, I have raised enough money to promote Fallen Love and cover my expenses. So thanks a lot guys! This story has been a long time coming. After two publication date delays (first December, then January, finally February) it feels like a relief to finally have it out there. Read my story on Kickstarter

Next Steps

If you’re just reading this, why not head over to my Facebook page or my Twitter and stay up-to-date with everything going on. If you want to know when book #2 is out—and get a free copy of my short story, the Vampire Eirik—please sign up to the mailing list.

What I’ll be doing

I will be busy over the coming days and weeks with promotion, including guest blogging organised by the gals over at LesCourt & Vibrant Promotions. Aside from that, I will be busy with social media and advertising. The ads will start once the book has its reviews.

Wish me luck! It’s finally coming together.

The Final 48 hours

Hello readers!

I am happy to announce we’ve raised nearly £1000 for the Kickstarter! This has been more than I expected and, to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure how to respond. As a first time Kickstarter creator, I had no idea what to expect—and nor did I know anything about Kickstarter etiquette. Thanks to the help of Dyrk Ashton (an author you should check out!) and some newly-gained personal experience, I now have a plan in place for the remaining days until February 1st.

Stretch Goals

I am announcing two stretch goals in addition to my original goal of £500. Here’s an explanation for what all the goals mean:

1. The original goal: basic promotion. For £500, this covers the cost of the marketing professionals I’ve hired, as well as advertising on Amazon, Bookbub and Facebook.
2. Stretch goal #1: £1000. This pays for a BookBub promotion called Featured New Releases, and makes it easier for me to sell the book to bookstores.
3. Stretch goal #2: £1250. This pays for another blog tour & ARC reviews, and it makes the sequel, Fallen Desire, more financially viable.

Rewards

I’ve released two new rewards since the Kickstarter began. The first—the Special Edition eBook—gives backers never-before-seen artwork, and comes packaged with an excerpt from the Ark, plus secret editor feedback.

The second reward, named the Great Demon special, has two very special features: it lets you base a character in the sequel on yourself; and I dedicate the book to you! Yes, you heard that right.

Interested?

Then follow the link.

Please upvote Fallen Love on Reedsy!

Hello readers!

In a short break from my Kickstarter coverage (which is going quite well so far!) I would like to ask for your help on something different today. I have submitted Fallen Love to Reedsy Discovery, a website that specialises in promoting self-published books.

To feature on their newsletter, I need you to go and upvote my book. Just follow this link: https://reedsy.com/discovery/book/fallen-love-alex-stargazer

Given that their newsletter readership is fairly significant, this could really help! I have already received upvotes from the website founders, so let’s follow their example.

Thank you.

A Thank You to my Kickstarter backers!

I would like to thank all of the people who have backed my Kickstarter so far! Thanks to one particularly generous Kickstarter backer who pledged £100, we have now raised over £250! But remember: I need £500 to get funded—it’s all or nothing. So to all my readers, please make a pledge. And if you can’t, please share the link with your followers, friends, or family. The shortened link is: http://kck.st/2rRkPpq

An Important Announcement

Hello readers!

I have good news and bad news for you today. I’ll begin with the good news: My Kickstarter for Fallen Love has just gone live. I have a target of £500, and I need all the help I can get! If you can spare a bit of money and pledge for one of the rewards, I will be immensely grateful.

Follow the link here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/alex-stargazer/fallen-love-a-ya-lgbt-fantasy-novel

If you can’t pledge, you can still do me a massive favour by sharing the link. It can be on your Facebook page; on Twitter; on your personal blog; or even in more unconventional places like LinkedIn and in-person. Whatever works!

What’s the Bad News, Alex?

I am delaying the publication of Fallen Love to February 1st. This is also the same date that the Kickstarter ends, so no pressure! The simple reason for this is that I do not really have the resources to promote both the book and the Kickstarter at the same time, so the Kickstarter went first.

It’s also influenced by another important reason, which David Gaughran explained in his mini-book, Amazon Decoded: for a book to be successful on Amazon, it has to do one thing, and that’s rank well in a category. (Sub-categories are extremely important: it is much easier to rank highly in LGBT Fantasy or Urban Fantasy than Fantasy, never mind the Bestseller list.)

To do that, it needs to sell an increasing number of books over a 4 day period (or thereabouts). Having more time to get book blogs to promote the book is one way of doing this; and having more money also helps to pay for ads. This decision gives me more of both.

The Vampire Eirik is free on Smashwords!

Hello readers,

I am pleased to announce that the Vampire Eirik is free on Smashwords (and only Smashwords) from December 25th to January 1st (2019–2020). You can of course still get a free copy if you sign up to the mailing list here: Sign up now!

If you’ve signed up already, or if you want to do just do me a quick favour, follow the link to my book’s Smashwords page here: Buy on Smashwords Remember! If you buy my book (even for free) it will increase the ranking and help me find new readers.

In other news, I am currently in Vienna and going back to my home town in Romania. I am also busy setting up a Kickstarter campaign to raise more money for Fallen Love; I will tell you guys more in a future update. Hang on in there for a few more days.

Oh, and before I forget: Merry Christmas!